John Woods, CTO of the Algorand Foundation, said: update On how the project is spearheading quantum countermeasures to provide more secure cryptography.
In particular, Woods focused on the Falcon algorithm, which offers a way around potential threats posed by quantum computers.
What’s the problem with quantum computing and blockchain?
Quantum computing is the development of technologies that utilize quantum principles to provide advanced processing power. This is made possible by generating and manipulating qubits, also called qubits.
Information processed by conventional computers is encoded in bits, where each bit has the value 1 or 0.For quantum computing, the encoded information is qubit It can exist as both 1 and 0 at the same time.
The ability to be in multiple states at the same time is called superposition. Quantum computers with multiple superimposed qubits can handle mathematical problems much more efficiently than standard classical computers. This raises the possibility that quantum computers will be used to crack cryptographic schemes.
How Algorand Solves Problems
of August 2016the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) invited leading experts in the field to develop cryptographic algorithms that are resistant to quantum attacks.
Over 50 different algorithms have been submitted as candidates by cryptographers and scientists around the world. After nearly six years of rigorous cryptanalysis, examination, and testing, a handful of algorithms were selected…”
One of the algorithms chosen was Falcon, developed by Algorand developers Craig Gentry, Chris Peikert, and Vinod Vaikuntanathan. It is based on a technique calledHard lattices and new cryptographic trapdoors”
A signature algorithm is typically required to select a valid signature before acceptance. With today’s legacy algorithms, even legacy computers can use information from past signed messages to reveal this signing key.
Falcon works by adopting a more “strict method of choosing valid signatures” and does not reveal information about the signing key.
Woods revealed that Algorand plans to use Falcon signatures in some applications.state certification” for example. This technology refers to an interoperability standard that governs connections between different blockchains.
“Any Proof of Stake chain could implement state proof to take trust out of the cross-chain equation.”
Recent high-profile hacks, including the Nomad and Ronin bridges, highlight cross-chain bridges as a vulnerable area of attack.
